Norwegian Cruise Line and Meyer Werft celebrated the keel laying of the Norwegian Escape on 19th September at the shipbuilder’s state of the art facility in Papenburg, Germany. During the ceremony, block 35/41, the first of 86 blocks that will comprise the 164,600gt Breakaway Plus ship, was lifted into the covered building dock, officially marking the start of construction.
The Norwegian Escape will be NCL’s largest ship to date, carrying 4,200 passengers and is set for delivery in October 2015. Kevin Sheehan, NCL’s CEO, was present and laid the traditional lucky coin on the keel before the first block, weighing 400 tons, was placed by crane. A special commemorative coin featuring the ship was created to celebrate the day’s activities. The building process will take just over 19 months from steel cutting to delivery.

The Norwegian Escape will begin weekly seven-day cruises from her year-round homeport of Miami to the Eastern Caribbean on 14th November 2015 and will be the largest to home port year-round in Miami. The ship’s signature hull artwork is designed by marine wildlife artist and champion of ocean conservation, Guy Harvey, which features an underwater scene.